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An introductory statistics course and ability to use Microsoft Excel. Overview. This course is designed to develop an understanding of how human resource decisions contribute to business performance.
No business strategy can be uccessfully executed unless the right people are in place and they are given the opportunity and incentive to contribute to executing the strategy. OBJECTIVES Specific learning objectives include the ability to: Create alignment between human resource strategies and business strategies in a cost-effective manner. Design work systems and roles that allow employees to contribute to organization performance. Identify, select, and develop people having the competencies that allow them to contribute to organization performance.
Use compensation and other HR systems that provide rewards and incentives to ttract and retain employees and to encourage them to contribute to organization Understand how an employment relationship is like a contract and how the nature of this contract is evolving and taking different forms. Make human resource decisions that are legal and ethical. Learn how to use quantitative tools and information where appropriate to support decisions. GENERAL Class attendance and participation are expected. Assignments are due letter grade per day will be assessed on assignments handed in after that time.
You must take the final exam at the scheduled time. Assignments and the exam should be identified by placing your name on the back of the last page. TEXT Noe, R. , Hollenbeck, J. R. , Gerhart, B. , & Wright, P. (2006). Human Resource Management: Gaining a Competitive Advantage. Chicago: Irwin. 5th Edition. ISBN 0-07-298738-3. Several copies of this book are available from the Business School Library in case you decide not to purchase the book. Let me know if more reserve copies are needed. Class sessions will not rely heavily on the text.
It will more often be a source of more detailed information on topics we cover in class as well as a source of additional company examples. PACKETS Two packets can be purchased in the room adjacent to the Business School Copy Center on the first floor: (1) Harvard cases, and (2) course topic outlines. A third set of materials, readings, and assignments is available online at the course website (see below). E-RESERVESAvailable through MYUW. ASSIGNMENTS Case write-ups (3). Please submit written analyses of Au Bon Pain, Citibank, and GE’s Talent Machine: The Making ofa CEO.
Each case write-up is to be completed as an individual assignment or you may work with one or two other persons. (If the latter, submit one write-up. ) As noted earlier, this and other ssignments should be identified by placing your name on the back of the last page. The cases will be discussed in class the day they are due. As such, the case write-up must be submitted at the beginning of class. The remaining cases on the syllabus are for class discussion only. No written assignment is required. Write-ups should be no longer than two double-spaced pages of text (normal fonts and margins).
A one-page exhibit should also be used to summarize the Roles, Rewards, and People aspects of the HR Diamond (to be introduced in class). The most important parts of your write-up are the Alignment nd Application sections. Write-ups should incorporate relevant issues from the textbook and class (Application), as well as your own insights and analyses. The text section of your write-up should include areas A – C (see below) as headings. The exhibit section of your report should have headings corresponding to D – F (see below). Format and grading criteria for case write-ups: A.
Business Strategy (10 points) Briefly describe the generic strategy (e. g. , cost, differentiation) the firm uses to compete in its product market. Then, be more specific: What is unique about its product or its customer experience? B. Alignment (30 points) How do roles, rewards, and people practices (HR strategy) support the business strategy? Use the HR Diamond. C. Application (30 points) (1) Apply concepts/models/theories or examples from text and class. (“Company A’s compensation system… consistent/inconsistent with theory. “) (2) Note similarities/differences (and their reasons) when compared to other companies we discuss. “Company A pays employees based on _ rather than using the _ compensation approach favored at Company A because it is important that Company A… whereas Company (3) Identify problems with the HR strategy. “Company A’s decision to pay managers based on _ runs the risk of II. Exhibit/Table Section of Report (1 page maximum) (20 points) D. Roles Identify/list the most important aspects of how work is organized. E. Rewards Identify/list the most important aspects of the incentives used. F. People Identify/list the most important aspects of competencies people need and how people are selected and developed to have these competencies.
A final grading criterion used is: Readability (10 points) Organization of paper, including headings. Effective communication of ideas. Problem Sets (4). You may do these as individual assignments or you may work with ne or two other persons. (If the latter, submit one write-up. ) An example of each will be provided in class or in a handout. For each problem set, there is either an example discussed in class or a detailed example included in the problem set assignment. If you need help with the problem sets, do not hesitate to email me or come by my office.
It is important to quantify the result of human resource decisions to the extent possible. The problem sets provide examples of how quantitative data can be used to make better human resource decisions. Policy Evaluation Presentation. This is a team assignment. Your team should consist of 2 to 4 people. For this assignment, explain why a change in business strategy or lack of fit with business strategy created a need for an HR policy change. Evaluate the effectiveness of the new human resource policy introduced in an organization and present your findings to the class Final Exam.
There is a final, comprehensive, in-class exam. The exam will re-visit cases and problem sets from the term and other issues covered in class. The exam is an individual task. Based on past semesters, regular class attendance is associated GRADING case Analyses (3) Problem Sets (4) 30 % Final Team Presentation (including peer evaluation) 15 % Final Exam 25% Attendance/Contribution to Class DiscussionComes into play if within . 5 of next grade. A 92. 5- AB87. 5 – 92. 4 B 82. 5-87. 4 BC77. 5 – 82. 4 Et cetera Course Schedule Week 1 Introduction Jan. 3 Note: For most weeks, there will be readings (mostly newspaper articles and brief magazine articles) available on your MylJW website, in addition to those listed below. Please read these additional articles each week as well. HR Strategy (HR Diamond) Jan. 25 Text, Chapters 1, 2 Reading: Right Away and All at Once: How We Saved Continental. Harvard Business Review. [available via e-reserves website] Reading: Barney, J. B. & Wright, P. M. “On Becoming a Strategic Partner: The Role of Human Resources in Gaining Competitive Advantage. ” Human Resource Management, Spring 1998, Volume 37, No. 1, pp. 1-46. [available via e-reserves website] Reading (optional): Becker, B. & Huselid, M. (2003, December). “Measuring HR? Benchmarking Is Not the Answer! HR Magazine, pp. 57-61. Reading (optional): Walker, G. & MacDonald, J. R. (2001, Winter). Designing and Implementing an HR Scorecard. Human Resource Management, 40(4), 365-377. week 2 Case: Human Resources at Southwest Airlines Feb. 1 Roles Text, Chapter 4 (pp. 145-151 on Job Analysis; pp. 158-166 on Job Design; pp. 167-168 on HR at IBM only) Reading: “Whole Foods is All Teams. ” FastCompany. Reading/Optional: “The Anarchist’s Cookbook. ” FastCompany. Whole Foods] Reading/Optional: “Love the Worker, Not the Union, A StoreSays As Some Organize” [Whole Foods] week 3 Feb. 6 Rewards Case Write-Up: Au Bon Pain Feb. 8 People: Commitment Reading: Ittner & Larcker. “Coming up Short on Financial Measures. ” Harvard Business Review. Reading (optional): Barber & Strack. “The Surprising Economics ofa People Business. ” Harvard Business Review. Wee k 4 Feb. 13 People: Competencies Measures: Competencies (including personality) Feb. 15 Planning Text, Chapter 5 (pp. 174-193 only) Problem Set 1 Due: The value of favorable employee attitudes week 5 Feb. 0 Recruiting & Retention Text, Chapter 5 (pp. 194-208 only) Text, Chapter 10 Reading: “The 100 best companies to work for in America,” Fortune [available via e- reserve] Case: SG Cowen: New Recruits [bring your ratings of the four candidates] Feb. 22 Staffing/Globalization Text, Chapter 7 (PP. 302-306 only) Text, Chapter 1 5 Reading: “Four Seasons Goes to Paris. ” Academy of Management Executive. Reading: “More Flexibility by Europe’s Labor Stokes a Recovery. ” Wall Street Journal. Reading: “Deep Inside China, American Family Struggles to Cope. ” Wall Street week 6 Feb. 7 Staffing/EEO Issues Text, Chapter 3 March 1 Staffing/EEO Issues Problem Set 2 Due: Planning headcount needs. March 6 Staffing/Selection Text, Chapter 6 Reading: “Employers Gauge Candidates’ Skills at ‘Real-World’ Tasks ” . wall Street Journal. March 8 Staffing/Selection Wee k 8 March 13 Assessing Performance Text, Chapter 8 Case Write-Up: Citibank March 1 5 Pay-setting & Merit Pay Text, Chapter 1 1 Case: Merck Wee k 9 March 20 Incentive Pay: Upside Potential Text, Chapter 12 Reading: “The Art Of Motivation: What you can learn from a company that treats workers like owners.
Inside the surprising performance culture of steelmaker Nucor. ” Business Week. Case: Lincoln Electric March 22 Incentive Pay: Downside Risks Reading: Hastings, D. F. (1999). Lincoln Electric’s harsh lessons from international expansion. Harvard Business Review, May-June, 163-178. Reading: Kerr, S. (2003). The Best-Laid Incentive Plans. Harvard Business Review. Problem Set 3 Due: The value of accurate employee selection decisions. March 27 Benefits Text, Chapter 13 (skim only) Case: SAS Institute March 29 Training & Development Text, Chapter 7 (PP. 55-280; 298-302 only) week 11 SPRING BREAK (April 3 & 5) week 12 April 10 Staffing and Development/ln-basket exercise April 12 Career Management & Succession Planning Text, Chapter 9 (PP. 396-417) Case Write-Up: GE’s Talent Machine: The Making ofa CEO. week 13 April 17 Employee Relations & Legal Issues: Union and Nonunion Employees Text, Chapter 14 Text, review Chapter 10 (pp. 427-433 only) April 19 Mergers & Acquisitions HR Strategy (HR Diamond): Review Exam Review Problem Set 4 Due: Invest in Training? week 14 April 24 Work Day week 1 5 May 1 May 3 week 16 May 8 May 10 Policy Presentations Exam